EXPERTS have warned that addicts in East Lancashire could end up with ‘nowhere to go for help’ if councils continue to cut budgets, as new figures show the authority is spending almost £4million less on services than they were six years ago.

Councils across the north west have cut budgets for drug and alcohol services to the tune of £16million over the period, leading to concerns about the number of rehabilitation facilities closing their doors as a direct result.

According to the UK Addiction Treatment group, In Lancashire alone the council’s misuse budget has dropped from £19,487,671 in 2013 to £15,599,371 in 2019, meaning the authority is spending £3,888,300 less than they were six years ago.

But council bosses are keen to point out that a reduction in the amount they are spending is more likely to be attributed to the fact that they have changed the way in which they run the service.

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: “In recent years we have been increasing the use of community rehab services for people with less complex needs to ensure they get the rehabilitation support they need.

"The placements at rehab centres are now aimed at the more complex cases."

The council also added that the 2013/14 figures would have included prison drug treatment, a responsibility they say was moved to the NHS three years ago resulting in all figures not being like-for-like.

But the company that collected the information, the UK Addiction Treatment Group, say that any reduction in funding will be having an impact of the number of facilities able to help vulnerable people.

After speaking to the Quality Care Commission – the independent regulator of health service – about the closures, results showed that as of April 2013, 28 services were available to those in need, compared to just 23 today.

This, they say, represents a 17% closure rate to drug and alcohol treatment services across the north west, landing a ‘double whammy blow’ to addicts.

Eytan Alexander, Managing Director of UKAT said: “If less money is being spent by local councils on placing those most vulnerable into treatment, then we will undoubtedly see even more public rehabs having been forced to close their doors by this time next year.

“Not everyone can afford to pay for their addiction treatment, but everyone deserves to be treated and given a second chance at life. But at this rate, where will addicts living here go to get help?

“It is not a coincidence that as councils across the North West spend less of substance misuse treatment services, public rehabs close down and more people die.”

The council spokesman added that they are now working more closely with partner organisations such as the NHS, enabling them to target services to those who need it most.

They added: "Last year there were 316 placements by the council into rehabilitation centres."